I had purchased some minerals in Woodward County, OK back in 2016 and there was a well that was drilled in 2015 and has produced to present. The operator of the well applied for a pooling and it was later dismissed. There was probably around 10 mineral owners that were listed as reposondents and none of these respondents were ever leased for the drilling of this well. I had purchased one of these owners minerals. I sent a copy of the mineral deed to the operator to get in pay for the well and never heard anything. So I called and tried to inquire what was going on, and they took my info and said they would look into and call me back. Well 3 years later its been the same story and still no luck with getting in pay and paid for back royalties. Is there anything that I can do without having to hire an attorney to go after the operator? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
If you post the section, township and range, I can look up the production and the operator. If you know the well name, that would be helpful as well.
Section 05-20N-20W, well is the Freedom A4, Operator is Danick Resources out of Dallas. The production isn’t great, but still would like to get paid.
The production on that well has been very random for years. Looks like they only pick up oil very few months. The total oil production has only been 5965 bbls of oil … Did you ever get a Division Order? Probably not…The best production was in 2015 and the first three months of 2016. Depending upon when you bought it, you may not get much. The address for the Operator was Danick Resources 5005 LYNDON B JOHNSON FREEWAY STE 75244,DALLAS, TX 75244. That was back in 2014 and was on the permit.
I looked them up on bizapedia.com and they “forfeited their existence”. You may have to look them up of Google or with the Secretary of State in Texas to see if they still exist. They reported and oil pickup of 151 bbls in May 2019 and 133 in March, scattered ones before that.
I would suggest hunting them down and sending a certified letter return receipt demanding payment and back interest. They owe you 12% if you have clear title.
Thank you for providing the production info. I had bought the mineral interest in 2016. After I mailed the mineral deed to Danick we never received a DO, so that is when I started calling to figure out what the issue was. I have spoken with the owner Dan Lane a couple times and he says he’ll get it taken care of and then nothing happens. Good idea with sending a certified letter! I’ll try that and hopefully it will get things moving.
They have a statutory responsibility to pay you. Certified letters with the return receipts and copies of everything help you keep a good paper trail. You may only get a few dollars out of this.
Ok, thanks. I’ll make sure to keep records of everything. Do you have any experience with filing a complaint with the Oklahoma Corporation Commission?
No, I have not had to do that. I have heard that they will not deal with payment issues as that is not their purview. Payment issues are between the mineral owner and the operator.
The company that purchases the oil usually pays the royalty owners directly. If you get them involved, they may put pressure on the operator for you. I’m just not sure how you find out the purchaser in Oklahoma.